Station-indicator.



PATENTED MAY-28, 1907.

No. 855,319I

' J. 'KNUTSON. 7 STATION INDICATOR;

APPLICATION FILEI) NOV. 1, 1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

wane/a amvemtoz P. N 0 S T U N K J STATION. INDICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 1, 1004.

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@Homwg PATENTED MAY 28, 1907.

J. KNUTSON. STATION INDICATOR. APPLIOA'TION FILED NOV. 1, 1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3 I aim/11a;

UNITED- STATES PATENT orrrcn.

JOHN KNUTSON, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

STATION-INDICATORi 7 Application filed Noveinher 1,1904. Serial No.230,918,

erence being bad to the accompanying draw- Myinvention relates toimprovements in ings, and to the letters and figures of reference markedthereon, which form a part of this specification.

station indicators and it is articularly adapted for use on street cars.ts objectis v v to automatically exhibit the names of the streets'as thecar moves along; I

In myimproved construction a suitable name curtain is movably mounted inthe car and is caused to move whereby the names of the streets upon theline are successivelybrought into view by passing in front of an openingin the cabinet 01 case in which the "curtain is mo unted. The movementof the curtain is automatically accom lished throughthe mstrument'alityof mec anism which engages projections arranged along the trackatsuitable-intervals. A suitable deviceengaging these .p'roj ections, isforced u wardly, and through the instrumentality oi certain connections,'the name' curtain is actuated in the'one'direction or the other,

accordingto. the direction in which the car is moving.

Having briefly outlined my improved construction as well asthe functionit is intended to perform, I will proceed to describe the same in detailreference being made to the accompanying drawing in which .isillustrated an embodiment thereof. i In this drawing, Figure 1 is afragmentary side elevation of .a car whose side is partly broken away infront to disclose the cabinet crease in which the name curtain islocated. Fig. 2 is a detail view of the lower part of the mechanismshown on a-larger scale and con nected with the bottom ot the car whichshown in section. Fig. 3 is a front'view of the mechanism with the frontWall of the casing removed and the bottom of the car shown in section;:Fig. 4 is aside view of the mechanism, the casing bein 'shown in sec-Specificationof Letters Patent.

Patented May 28, 1907.

hammer; v Fig. 10 isa similar view otthe lower part of the casing. Fig.1' 1 is afitont view of the cabinet orcase inwhich the name ism arelocated[ Fig, 12 is "a fragmentary pawl holder. Fig. 13 isasection takenon the line 14.14 Fig. 3 viewed in the direction. indicated by thearrow... Fig." 14s-is a sectional view takenthroughithe ratchet -;26 andthe pawl holder on the dotted line 55 in Fig. 3, the position of one ofthe pawlsbeing'indicated by dotted lines and the two pawls being shownat their upward limit-Jot movement. Fig. 15, is an end view of-"the sameconstruction looking from the left toward the "position as in Fig. 14. v.The same reference characters indicate the sameiparts in all the views.1

Let the numeral 5 designate a cabinet or case which as shown in thedrawing is mount; ed in the front part of the car and provided with aslide 6 in which is formedan opening7 through which the names of thestreets or stations formed on the name curtain 8 are displayed. Theopening 7 in the slide registers with an opening 9 formed in the frontwall 10 01" the casing. This wall 10 is provided with handles 11 ,and 12for convenience of adjustment and is held in place by means of keepers13 which engage rods 14 mounted in the casing. In-the sides of thecasing 5 are journaled upper and lower drums 15 and '16 upon which thename curtain 8 is mounted and adapted'to be wound from one to the other.The extremities of this curtain are secured to the. drums? Following thecurtain from the lower drum upwardly, it extends rearwardly'from thedrum 16 passing behind rollers 17 and 18 thence downwardly underneathtion. Fig. '5 isa' section ta "en on the line.

archer-19, itlienceflPWardly in front of 'rollolefin-and? l dlthencetothe drum 15.

part of the casing showing the gong and curtain and most of theoperating med an right of Fig. 3 showing the pawls in the same 'detailview of the stemconnectedwith the l 4,0" iiinged to-the bottom of thecar as shown at ""iherollef :iou rnaled in the upright arms 22' of aU-shaped frame to whose transverse par-i123 is secured a weight 24 forregulating the tension- "of the 'name curtain. This weight rises andfalls as the size of the drums varies due to the winding and unwindingof the curtain. It will be understood that the drums must be actuated auniform distance the whole name curtain is wound thereon, it

will be understood. that as this drum begins tonnwind, a certain part ofa rotation will unwind a'greater length of curtain than when the drum issmaller; and as both drums are moved the same distance, the smallerdiameter of the empty drum would not take up as much curtain as isunwound from the full drum. The weighted frame with which the roller 19is connected, will therefore take up the slack. On the other hand afterthe name curtain is nearly unwound from one, drum, the length of curtainunwound therefrom by a sin 10 movement of the actuating devices wdulrnot be sufficient to allow the othewd'rum the necessary movement. Inthis event the weighted roller will move upwardly to compensate for thedeficiency.

Eictendin outwardly from the sprocket wheel A of t e drum 16', areratchet zones 26 and 27 having oppositely disposed teeth adapted/tabsacted on by' pawls 28 and 29. These awls are movably mounted on apart 31an are connected by a sprin 30. Rigidly secured to the part31 anextending downwardly through the bottom of the car is a stem 32 to whoselower'extremity 1s pivotally connected at 33 a part 34. This part'34asses through a slot 35 formed in an arm 36 37 whereby the arm isadaptedto oscillate from its hinge. pin as afcentpr during the op-.,eratio-n'of'the device.- Upon the arm 36 is .45-

fulcrumed as shown at 38 a-locking lever 39 provided with a notched part40 adapted to engage a recess 41 formed in the part 34 when .it isdesired to operate the name curtain.

' 'Oii'e endofthe lever 39 is connected with the arm 36 by a spring 42while its opposite extremity is provided with an anti-frictional roller43 which acts on a lever44 as the arm 36 is moved upwardly. The'lever 44acts as a cam to disengage the locking lever from the'part 34 when thearm 36 has moved sufficiently for the performance of its function.

By virtue of this construction the name curtain is given a uniformpredetermined movement every time the arm 36 is actuated regardless ofthe distance the said arm travels; since as soon as the locking lever isdisengaged from the part 34, the oscillating arm mbves idly.

The lever 44 in addition to the performence of. the cam function alreadydescribed,

of the casing 5.

alsoenablesthe person in charge of the car to throw the lever 39 to theunlocked position when for any reason it is desired that theoscillatingarm 36 should move idly or Without operating the name curtain. Thisleveris fulcrumed at 45 and one armprojects down wardly into position toact on the roller extremity of the locking lever, while the other armprojects upwardly through the-platform of the car and within reach ofthe motorman or other person in charge'of the latter. When this lever 44isthrown to the os ition shown by dotted lines in 3, the ever 39' isthrown to the unlocked position and the arm 36 will move idly.

The arm 34 is provided at its lower extremity with'a key 46 which formsa stop to limit the. downward movement of the'oscillating arrnx thebottom of the car. The closed lower end of this frame also limits thedownward movement of the oscillating arm. shaped frame is mounted a coilspring 48 which is held in place by upperand lower studs 49 and 50.Theoscillating arm has an opening through which the stud 49 passes. T

This arm also passesfbetween the vertioal arms of a U-shaped frame 47secured to In this ue function of this spring; 48, is to return theoscillating arm 36. to its downward limit of movement after each upwardmovement for the purpose offactuat-ing thename ourtain';

To the rear extremity of the oscillating arm or the extremity farther tothe right in- Figs. 1

and 2, is attached. depending yoke 51 to whose lower extremity issecured'a roller 52 adapted to act on Proie'ctions 53 secured atsuitable intervals between the track rails for the purpose of actuatingthe oscillating arm whereby the name curtain is operated. Theseprojections are so located that the name cur tain is given amovement asthe car approaches any streetor station, whereby the name of the latteris displayed throughthe side 0 ening 9 The lower extremities of thepawls 28 and The yoke 51 is fu'rt er Con- 29 are movably mounted in' thepawl holder 31 whereby they are allowed to rock. The spring 30 has atendency to holdboth pawls in position to act on their. respectiveratchet zones 26 and 27. It is evident, however, that only one of thesepawls can be operative at the same time since their tendency is to turnthe drum 16 in opposite directions. In order to hold one of these pawlsin the inoperative position, I provide a part 54 having the function ofa cam.. This part is located between the two pawls and when thrown intoone position holds one pawl away from its ratchet zone, and when thrownin thes ther position holds the other pawl away from its When eitherpawl is inoperaratchet zone. tive, the other is hold in the operativeposi tion by the spring 30.

As shown in the drawing the cam part 54 is mounted on a shaft 55 journaled in the casing and provided with a hand crank56 exrevolubly inthe part 60.

' held in the inoperative position.

posed on the lower part of the casing. This part 54 is" rovided with twoarms 57 connected by a pin 58 the-latter acting on the. pawls to throwthem to-the inoperative po' sition. The arms 57 are rigidlyconnectedwith the shaft 55 at their extremities remote from the pin 58. The handcrank '56 is of special construction in order that it maybe held ineither extreme position of adjustment or whereby the one cam or theother is The hand piece of this crank is composed" of two parts- 59 and60. A pin 70 is made fast in the part 59 and is movablebothlongitudinally and This pin projects inwardly beyond the part 60 and isnormally 1 which the spring bears. extremity is adapted to'enteropenings 73 held at its inward limit of movement by a spring 71. Theinner extremityof the pin is provided with an enlargement 72 againstThis'enlarged inner formed in the casing both above and below the shaft55. The parts 59 and 60 where they engage each other'are provided withinclined or beveled faces whereby, assuming that the parts are in theposition shown in Fig. 8, if

the part 59 is turned, it together with the pin a 71 willbe drawnoutwardly whereby the ex tremity 72 is disengaged from the opening 73 ofthe casing. The crank may then be turned to. throw the cam device 54 tothe opposite position of adjustment. Upon. theshaft isalso fulcrumed'abrake lever .74 one extremity of which engages the part 16 of the drum16 (see Figs. 3 and 13).: Connected with one arm of this brake lever isa spring 75 which may be of any desired tension according to the powerrequired. The extremityof this spring remote from the lever, is con-'nected with a stop 76 on the frame or casing.

The journal at one extremity of the drum 16, protrudes from the casingas shown at 77 and is fashioned to receive a crank or key, whereby thedrum may be turned to regulate the position of the name curtain asdesired or to adjust the latter so that any desired street name may beautomatically displayed as the carproceeds.

In order to announce the coming of any stargtion name into View, I haveprovided means playing a station name, one of the pins 82 acts on thecam 81 to actuate the hammer 78 whereby the. latter is raised andreleased causing it to strike the gong 79.

From the foregoing. description the use and operation of my improveddevice will be readily understood. As the car'moves along the track,every time the roller 52 encounters a projection 53, the oscillating arm36 is raised to the position shown by dotted lines in'Fig. 2 whereby oneof the dogs 28 or 29 is made to impart a partiallrotation to the drums15 and 16 carrying the name Tcurt'ain as heretoufore described. In casethe,arni'36 is moved movement to the drums, the lever-4A engages the arm39 and throws it to the un-- locked position whereby the arm 36 isdisengaged from the hinged part 34 of thestem 32; This operation will berepeated as often as the roller 52 engages aprojection 53. After ing.that it is to make the reverse movement,-' the handle 56 is adjusted tothrow'one pawl 28 01"29 to theinoperative position whereby the other onewhich. was previously-inacfor actuating the drums. The operation on thereturn trip, is of course the same as before except that the namecurtain is movingin the opposite direction whereby the names of thestreets or stations are displayed in the reverse order. I i

In further explanation of the construction and dperation of the pawls 28and 29 attention'l -is called to the fact that each of these 'Aseparated by a projection A. hen the cam 54 is adjusted tov throw eitherpawl to cam engages the upper recess A of the pawl (see Figs. 4 and 5)..Now as the pawl holder is in'oved upwardly to actuate the drums, thepawl not engaged by the cam, acts to impart the rotary movement to thedrum, while the other drum 1 virtue of the. engagement of its projectionA with the part 58 on the cam, but the. upward movement is suilicient.to cause theprojection A" to ride over the c'am'and allowits part 58 toenter the lower recess A of the pawl, in which event this pawl, movesinwardly and engages a-tooth of'its ratchet,'to lock the drum againstfurther movement by the actuating pawl. This operation is-illustrated inFigs. 14 and 15, the actuating pawl being clearly shown in Fig. 14 andthe looking or retarding" pawl' shown in Fig. 15. This looking orretarding feature of: the one pawl is of great importance, since ifitwere not for this "feature, a sudden and forceful movement of theoperating mechanism from beneath the car, would often cause the drums tomove much farther than they should; but this feature forms a positivelock against farther movement of the drums than is necessary. As soon asthe actuating impetus ceases, and the pawls drop down wardly, theactiomnf the brake lever 74 is farther than is necessary to give theproper the .car has reached one end of the line, assumtive, is broughtinto the operativejposition pawls is provided with two recesses A and H5 the inoperative position, the part 58 .of the pawlmoves'outwardly awayfrom the described my invention, what ing and provided with a caminterposed between the two pawls for throwing either pawl out of thedrum actuating position while the other pawl remains in position'toactuate the drum, the relatively inactive pawl serving when at itsupward limit of movement to. prevent the drum from moving too far underthe influence of the actuating pawl, an exposed crank connected with theshaft, the crank being provided with a longitudinally movablespring-actuated part provided,with

a cam face engaging a similar opposing face on the relatively stationarypart, the movable part being also allowed a partial rotary movement, thecasing being provided with a socket adapted to receive one extremity ofthe movable part whereby the crank and its connections are locked in theadjusted position.

l 2. The combination with station indicating mechanism mounted on a car,of a reciprocating device for actuating the mechanism, the said devicebeing provided with a stem passing through the-bottom of the ear andhavinga part pivotally connected with its lower extremity, anoscillating arm mounted on the car andhaving an opening to receive I thestem and its pivoted part, a depending part connected with-theoscillating am; and

I adapted to be automatically actuated from the track, .adoviee mountedon the oscillating arm for locking the pivoted. -part of the stemthereto, and suitable meansforunlockwardly a predetermined-distance.

The combination with station mdicator mechanism mounted on a car, {ifdepending operating means connected with the bottom of the ar, and aconnectionbetween said depending means and the indicator mechanism, theoperating means consisting of an oscillating arm having a depending.part, a locking device mounted on the oscillating arm and. adapted tolock the, latter to the connection'with the indicating mechanism, and alever mounted on the car and projecting up through the bottom'thereoffor unlocking the locking device of the' oscillating arm.

4. Station indicating mechanism including a drum having two ratchetsprovided with oppositely disposed teeth, and a pair of separated pawlsmounted to reciprocate and arranged to cooperate with the two ratchets,each pawl having two recesses separated by a projection, a cam adaptedto be adjusted to throweitherpawl out of the drum-actuat ing position,the cam in this event engaging the upper recess of the pawl, and meansfor moving the pawls suflieiently to bring the cam into the lower recessof the pawl which it engages, the arrangement being such that the camengaged b the pawl serves when at its upward limit 0% movement to engageits ra'tchet'and lock the drum against moving too far in response to theactuating movement of the other pawl.

ingthe' lever after the arm is moved up- Intestimony whereof I afiix mysignature in presence of two witnesses.

I JOHN KNUTSON. Witnesses:

' DENA NELSON, A. J. OBR1EN.

